Glen Cove Controller Fights Termination; 100s Get Late Paychecks

GLEN COVE, NY — The Glen Cove mayor handed the city controller her termination notice last week and hundreds of workers received their paychecks late Thursday.

Sandra Clarson, who has been the controller for more than two years, told Patch on Friday that Mayor Timothy Tenke notified her of her termination a week ago, leading to Thursday's "debacle."

The position oversees accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, budget, and more. The position cannot remain empty by law, she said, and a replacement controller was never been approved, so she came into work Monday. To her "horror," she found the locks on her office had been changed. Police officers eventually allowed her to collect her belongings.

On Thursday, with no one available to certify the payroll, the mayor told Newsday in a statement he issued an "executive order" authorizing the deputy mayor to certify the payroll, which Clarson said requires a cash analysis.

Clarson said she requested a temporary restraining order in Nassau County Supreme Court on Wednesday seeking to return to work. In it, she warned that about 400 city workers would go unpaid if she wasn't allowed to return to work.

A message has been left with Tenke's office and we'll update when we hear back.